Manager Brian Barry-Murphy looks ahead to Dale's League One fixture v Blackpool at the Crown Oil Arena...
The boss wants Dale’s home ground to be a difficult venue for opposition teams to visit, and thanked the supporters for their backing so far this season.
“Like I’ve said previously, it has been a ground, for the past few months, where we’ve been very excited to play,” said Barry-Murphy.
“Our results have been excellent there, so the players are really feeling very confident going into games at home, which is something that we thought was imperative as a group.
“We’ve got to continue that and make it somewhere that opposition teams think is going to be a difficult venue, and they must surely do at the moment.
“The support has been incredible and everybody that can come to the games has been coming, so we’re just trying to push those numbers up and get higher attendances.
“The easiest way to do that is by putting in performances that we feel is exciting for the supporters and hopefully they think they have been so far.”
Despite the result against Sunderland on Tuesday night, Dale produced an excellent performance, and Barry-Murphy is pleased with the players’ reaction.
“Initially, after the game, we were very disappointed. The lads were quite flat and didn’t feel as if they deserved to lose, but they’ve picked themselves up very quickly.
“This group of lads have been extremely dedicated and professional since March, and the effort they’ve put in has been amazing.
“They’ve continued that, and the last few days have been very, very productive from us in terms of recovering and preparing for Blackpool on Saturday.”
In Blackpool, Dale face the Sky Bet League One leaders, who have three wins a draw from their opening four games, and Barry-Murphy says it is a game that excites his players.
“It's something we spoke about in pre-season, that every game in League One seems to be against a top opposition.
“Blackpool are top of the league for a reason, because they’ve got an extremely good group of players with an outstanding manager.
“But these are the games that we prepare for and games that fill the players with excitement.
“Hopefully, everybody at the Club is the same and that we’re all looking forward to Saturday’s game and producing a performance, which, to be fair to the players, we have done over a period of time now.”
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